Saint Patrick's Battalion

Saint Patrick's Battalion was a battalion of 200+ Irish, German, and other Catholic European immigrants, escaped African-American slaves, and US Army deserters that served in the Mexican Army from 1846 to 1848 during the Mexican-American War. The battalion served as an artillery unit for much of the war, and the battalion fought fiercely at the Battle of Churubusco, knowing that its members would probably be executed for desertion if captured. 50 were hanged in a mass execution, and many others were branded, lashed, or shot by a firing squad. The battalion's members have become heroes in Mexico for fighting for Catholicism against the Protestant Americans.